Red Sox Beat: Big Papi still a bargain for Boston

Monday

Mar 24, 2014 at 6:45 PMMar 25, 2014 at 8:50 PM

By Eric AvidonDaily News staff

David Ortiz campaigned for more money, and got it.

Late Sunday night the Red Sox announced that they'd signed Big Papi to a contract extension for 2015 worth $16 million, and that the deal includes a club/vesting option for 2016 that will be triggered if Ortiz reaches a certain number of plate appearances in 2015, and a club option for 2017.

Ortiz, who turned 38 last November, will be just shy of his 40th birthday at the end of the contract, and should the option years be exercised would be almost 42.

"We feel great that this virtually guarantees that David will finish his career with the Red Sox," general manager Ben Cherington said at a press conference with Ortiz and manager John Farrell Monday in Fort Myers, Fla. "And more importantly, probably to the three of us up here, I know for John and myself, we feel great that it means that David's going to be in the middle of our lineup for longer. And that's really important to us."

Ortiz, meanwhile, said, "In my case, this is the place I want to be. This is the place that I know. And now knowing that as long as I'm healthy and as long as I'm good to go, I'm going to be playing here, it's just less stress."

Everyone was happy.

But yet again, the Red Sox got Ortiz on the cheap.

Though he had been released by the Minnesota Twins after the 2002 season and wasn't even projected to be a starter when he was signed by the Red Sox — remember Jeremy Giambi at first base early in 2003? — he quickly established himself as far more valuable than the $1.25 million he was paid.

He re-signed with the Red Sox after 2006 without filing for free agency, with his salary rising to $13.25 million in 2007 — following a season when he hit 54 home runs.

Twice since then Ortiz has become a free agent, but both times the Red Sox were able to sign him for far less than hitters with comparable numbers.

He inked a one-year contract after the 2011 season worth $14.575 million as the Red Sox essentially wanted Ortiz to prove he wasn't on the downside of his career, then signed a two-year deal the following offseason — after he'd missed most of the second half with an Achilles' tendon injury — that paid him $14 million last year and pays him $15 million this season.

Along the way, the Red Sox shelled out an average of just under $20.3 million to sign Carl Crawford, and gave Adrian Gonzalez a deal valued at $22 million annually. Neither made it through two seasons with the Red Sox before being shipped out of Boston with Josh Beckett for a bag of baseballs.

Meanwhile, Ortiz has been in the middle of the lineup for three World Series winners — when none had been won in these parts in 86 years — and has become the face of the franchise, the one who stood up in a show of strength at Fenway Park days after the Boston Marathon was bombed, the one who roused his teammates during Game 4 of the World Series when the Red Sox were in danger of going down 3-1 to the Cardinals, and of course the one who has more major postseason hits than perhaps anyone in baseball history.

If anyone has deserved $20 million to wear a Red Sox uniform, it's Ortiz.

Last season, Ortiz hit 30 home runs, drove in 103 runs, and had an OPS of .959. He then carried the Red Sox in the World Series with an average of .688 and OPS of 1.914 in Boston's win over the Cardinals.

"What we do know is that we always go off what we've seen most recently, and what we've seen most recently is a guy in 2013, even putting the playoffs aside, even in the regular season, he was one of the best hitters in the league," Farrell said. "We don't have any reason to believe that's not going to continue for some period of time. David takes terrific care of himself. He cares."

In his 11 seasons with the Red Sox he's hit 373 home runs, driven in 1,191 runs, batted .292, slugged .572 and compiled an OPS of .962.

If he hits seven more home runs for the Red Sox he'll surpass Dwight Evans for fourth in team history, and with another three after that he'll pass Jim Rice for third. He's also fifth in franchise history in doubles and extra-base hits, sixth in total bases, eighth in runs scored and ninth in hits.

Yet he's never been the highest paid player on the team, and his salary has paled in comparison to the game's other top hitters.

"Guys putting up my numbers, they're making $25 million, $30 million," Ortiz said in February when he went public with his desire for a contract extension. "I'm not asking for that. I'm asking for half of it."

The Red Sox didn't have to give Ortiz even the $16 million he'll get in 2015. And they didn't have to pay him $14 million last year or $15 million this year.

Given that Ortiz was coming off an injury in 2012 he wouldn't have gotten close to two years and $29 million on the open market. And given his age, he probably wouldn't have gotten one year at $16 million on the open market after this season.

But given what Ortiz has meant to the Red Sox, playing at what amounts to a bargain salary the entirety of his time in Boston, it wouldn't have broken the team's bank to, just once, give him more.

Then again, John Henry didn't get rich by being magnanimous.

Eric Avidon can be reached at 508-626-3809 or eavidon@wickedlocal.com. Follow him on Twitter @ericavidon.

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